Overview
FAR 15.605 outlines the mandatory administrative, technical, and financial components required for an unsolicited proposal to be formally considered by a federal agency. This section ensures that agencies receive sufficient detail to evaluate the proposal’s merit, cost-reasonableness, and alignment with their specific mission.
Key Rules
- Administrative Requirements: Proposals must include basic organizational data, the identification of proprietary information, and the signature of an individual authorized to contractually obligate the offeror.
- Technical Detail: Offerors must provide a concise abstract (~200 words) and a comprehensive discussion of the methodology, anticipated results, and how the effort supports the agency's specific mission.
- Key Personnel: The proposal must include biographical information for the primary staff and alternates involved in the project.
- Cost and Contractual Data: Proposals must include a detailed price or cost estimate, the preferred contract type, and a suggested validity period (minimum of 6 months is recommended).
- Disclosure of Prior Contact: Offerors must list any other agencies receiving the proposal and name any agency technical points of contact already consulted.
- Organizational Context: The submission must detail the offeror’s past performance, relevant experience, and potential organizational conflicts of interest (OCI).
Practical Implications
- High Barrier to Entry: Because the FAR requires "sufficient detail for meaningful evaluation" and a 6-month validity period, offerors must invest significant time and resources into a proposal that has no guarantee of funding or award.
- Strategic Alignment: To be successful, an offeror must move beyond technical innovation and explicitly map their proposal to the specific mission goals of the target agency.
- IP Protection: Offerors must be diligent in identifying proprietary data under section (a)(3) to prevent the government from disclosing sensitive trade secrets or technical approaches during the review process.